Sharing Your Faith

Immediately before Jesus left earth and ascended into Heaven, He gave this final instruction to His followers:

But when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, you will receive power and will tell people about me everywhere . . . (Acts 1:8).

Jesus said that we are supposed to be His witnesses (Acts 1:8). That means we should tell people what we know about Him. Plain and simple.

Sharing your faith should be the most natural thing in the world because it’s really nothing more than telling someone else the story of what God has done for you personally. It doesn’t have to be in a fancy speech or in a well-crafted presentation; in fact, it is better if it isn’t. Since the essence of Christianity is about a relationship with Jesus, you’re better off by simply sharing your personal story of what Christ means to you (it is called your “testimony”).

A reluctance to share your faith might be caused by fear of how people will respond. Will I be ridiculed? Might I offend someone? Don’t worry about it. Nothing is objectionable about someone sharing about his or her spiritual journey in a manner that is sincere and respectful.

Try to remember that sharing your faith isn’t really about you. And it is not even about getting a “yes” or “no” answer from the person you’re talking to. It is all about God and simply talking about His incredible gift of salvation. This means that you are relieved of a lot of pressure:

• You aren’t supposed to be Jesus’ public relations agent. He doesn’t need you to build up a bunch of hype about Him. Don’t alter what you have to say based on what you think your friends want to hear. Just tell them about Jesus as you know Him.

• You aren’t His sales force. You aren’t paid on a commission based on how many people we get to sign a “salvation” contract. We shouldn’t use pressure tactics. You aren’t trying to “make a sale.”

• He doesn’t need a marketing strategist. Don’t think that you need to trick people into learning about Jesus. Be upfront and straightforward with people. Jesus can take it from there.

People don’t need a religion, but they do need Jesus. Don’t get distracted from this simple message: Jesus loves them, He died on a cross to pay the penalty for their sins, and he wants to establish a personal relationship with them.

Don’t worry that you have to answer every conceivable theological question. All you need to talk about is what you have found to be true in your own experience. No one can honestly expect you to have all of the answers (especially since there are many mysteries about God that have existed for thousands of years).

Leave the sermons to the pastors. Your friends and family don’t want to hear any preaching from you. They don’t need to be lectured, scolded or ridiculed. You are not properly representing Jesus if you are alienating these people when you present God’s message to them. Sure, they are sinners, but so are you. Jesus hates your sin, but He loves you. And you should show that same love to all of the unsaved people you know.

Sharing your faith effectively – through your character, your conduct and your words – is simply the natural outgrowth of loving God.

• As you love God more, you will be more excited about the things He is doing in your life. Your excitement about God will make it easier for you to talk to other people about Him.

• As you love God more, your understanding of Him will grow. Your relationship with Him will become even more personal. Then it will be even easier for you to explain your relationship with God to those who don’t know Him.

• As you love God more, you won’t have to force yourself to share your faith. You will be doing it naturally – your deeds and words will be a testimony of God’s love – because the Holy Spirit is producing God’s character in your life.

Once people know you are a Christian, they will be examining your life to see if your faith is legitimate. Oh sure, we want our unsaved family and friend to be paying attention to when we are acting spiritual. But we don’t want them watching when:
• We yell a few colorful comments at the referee who makes a bad call;
• We’re laughing at a crude and offensive joke;
• A driver cuts us off on the freeway and we slander his intelligence or lineage;
• We’re gossiping about the people we work with.

Effective witnessing involves a combination of your character, your conduct, and your communication. All of these aspects of your life should be reflections of Jesus Christ. This is what sharing your faith is all about – telling and showing other people what Jesus is like. You can tell them by what you say, but you will show them by what you do.